This humiliated Yanagisawa even more than having to work with Sano. “Right Minister Ichijo, Emperor Tomohito, Lady Jokyōden, and Prince Momozono knew Sano was going to be at the palace last night, but you were the only person besides Aisu and my guards who knew I would be there too. You followed us. You killed Aisu, but Sano came before you could get to me. Then you came back to investigate the murder you’d committed.”
“I didn’t kill Konoe or Aisu.” Indignation flared in the yoriki’s voice. “Why would I?”
“Keep your voice down!”
“And why attack you?” Hoshina whispered furiously.
“To safeguard yourself from treason charges,” Yanagisawa said. “You’re too ambitious to be content with running the shoshidai’s office or being my personal retainer. You’re part of the conspiracy that Sano discovered. Konoe found out about it, and you had to kill him before he turned you in to the metsuke.”
“What conspiracy?” An incredulous look came over Hoshina’s face. “Turned me in for what?”
“Don’t play stupid with me. You’ve been gathering troops and weapons at Lord Ibe’s house, and you couldn’t take the chance that I might discover the plot to overthrow the Tokugawa. My death would cause a great upheaval in the bakufu. It would be a while before anyone reopened the investigation into Konoe’s murder, and in the meantime, you could launch your coup. So you came after me. You killed Aisu because you couldn’t tell which of us was which in the dark.” Yanagisawa slammed Hoshina against the wall. “Murderer! Traitor!”
Now Hoshina’s eyes blazed with anger. “Those are fine insults, coming from you. I’ve never murdered anyone, but everybody knows you have. I’m not plotting to overthrow the government, but you’ve already stolen the shogun’s authority. If you want to see a real murderer and traitor, look in the mirror!”
The yoriki shoved Yanagisawa away from him. Rage erupted within the chamberlain. “How dare you lay hands on me?”
“You were perfectly content to have my hands on you the other night,” Hoshina retorted.
“Don’t mock me!” Yanagisawa kicked at Hoshina’s knees and crotch, flung blows at his head and chest, all the while yelling curses.
At first Hoshina only ducked the strikes. “How can you treat me like this, after what I’ve done for you?” he cried. “I put myself in jeopardy by sabotaging Sano. Would I have risked conspiring against the shogun’s sōsakan if not to help you?”
“Stop trying to justify what you did!” Yanagisawa grabbed Hoshina, then punched his chin so hard that his head jerked back. “You wanted the power and wealth that I could give you. You wanted Sano gone so he couldn’t interfere with your plans.”
The yoriki shot out a forearm and bludgeoned Yanagisawa’s face. Pain exploded in Yanagisawa’s head. Then they were caught up in the whirlwind of earnest combat. Yanagisawa’s armor protected his body, but he took more blows to his face. He pummeled Hoshina. They crashed to the floor together. As they grappled for each other’s throats, desire inflamed Yanagisawa. He wanted Hoshina as badly as he wanted to kill the man with his bare hands.
Then the cell was full of men. They dragged Hoshina off Yanagisawa, begging, “Stop, Hoshina-san!”
Yanagisawa sat up and saw two yoriki holding Hoshina. Fury contorted Hoshina’s face as he struggled against them. Marume helped Yanagisawa stand. His left eye had begun to swell and his entire body was sore, but as far as he could tell, nothing was broken. As he stalked out of the cell, his spirit ached with an agony that had nothing to do with physical pain.
“Yanagisawa-san.”
Hoshina’s voice, filled with pleading, stabbed Yanagisawa like a jagged metal blade. Against his will, he turned.
Now Hoshina stood meekly while the police held him. “I swear upon my honor that I never wanted to hurt you, and I’m truly sorry I did.” Sincerity shone in his eyes, which gazed out at Yanagisawa from a bloody, bruised face.
“More lies and apologies won’t save you from paying for your crimes. I sentence you to death.” Even as he condemned Hoshina, Yanagisawa suffered an onslaught of desire and grief. He acknowledged a devastating truth.
He was in love with Hoshina. Love was the cause of the yearning he’d felt for the yoriki, the source and substance of the comradeship that had grown between them. He should have known. And he should have known better.
“If you’ll give me another chance, I’ll make it up to you,” Hoshina said. “I’ll help you solve the murder case, devote my life to your service-anything you want. I’ll prove that I’m innocent of any crimes. Just please…” Emotion cracked his voice. “Have mercy.”
Yanagisawa turned his back on Hoshina. Even if the yoriki wasn’t guilty of murder or treason, he deserved to die. He must die so that Yanagisawa could thwart Sano’s blackmail. And Yanagisawa would never again make the mistake of falling in love.
“You’ll be executed tomorrow morning,” he said.
The battering ram struck the gate of Lord Ibe’s house with a thunderous crash, splintering wood and breaking hinges. Soldiers rushed through the portals. More troops climbed the fences around the house and swarmed the property. Brandishing swords and spears, they shouted, “In the name of the shogun, come out and surrender!”
Chamberlain Yanagisawa charged into the front yard after his men. He welcomed action that would take his mind off the pain of Hoshina’s betrayal. He wanted to forget that he still loved Hoshina and mourned the yoriki’s impending death, even though he’d ordered it himself. He must avert the possible threat to the regime, and the capture of the outlaws represented a new chance to solve the murders.
The troops were inside the house now. As Yanagisawa entered, they stormed the corridor and rooms. Above him pounded the footsteps of the men who’d invaded the second story. Shouts echoed in the dim, musty space. Yanagisawa gripped his sword. His desire to be a great detective persisted; he discovered in himself a need to prove he was capable of more than just sabotaging Sano. The thrill of the raid stirred the place deep inside him where his samurai spirit lay dormant. With a strange, heady anticipation, Yanagisawa hungered for battle.
Then Detective Marume came running from the back of the house. “Nobody in here, Honorable Chamberlain,” he said.
Detective Fukida clattered down the stairs. “’Second floor’s empty, too. They’ve all cleared out.”
Yanagisawa’s spirits plunged. “What about the weapons?”
Fukida shook his head. Marume said, “We didn’t find any.”
The soldiers gathered in the corridor, sheathing their swords. Yanagisawa cursed, using temper to hide the despair that filled him as his suspicions about Hoshina grew. Had the yoriki somehow managed to send orders for the outlaws to move the arsenal after Sano imprisoned him? Yanagisawa didn’t wish to acknowledge the worst sins of his lover, or admit defeat. He wanted to torture Hoshina into revealing the outlaws’ whereabouts; he wanted to vent his fury while slaking his desire.
“Search the place again,” he said. “Look for anything that might tell us where the outlaws are or what they’re planning.”
While the men obeyed, Yanagisawa inspected the storerooms. They were empty, although the air still reeked of gunpowder. A single round bullet lay under the window. Yanagisawa picked up the bullet and cupped it despondently in his palm. His mood grew bleaker when the troops came to report an unsuccessful search.
“Ask the neighbors if they know where the occupants went,” Yanagisawa said. “If not, I want the city and surrounding areas searched for the arsenal. The outlaws may have gone to join their confederates. Find them before we have a war on our hands.”
He lingered in the empty arsenal. Tracing the outlaws would probably require a long, tedious search that would keep him in Miyako for ages. Yanagisawa hated the thought of reporting the bad news to his bakufu subordinates, who would spread the tale of his unsuccessful raid, setting him up to take the blame if a revolt did materialize. He dreaded spending the night alone at Nijō Castle, knowing that Hoshina would soon be dead. Crouching on the floor, he laid his head on his knees and succumbed to misery.